Appabattts for stretching and drying cloth



E.` B. 'BIGELOW, OF BOSTON,` MASSACI-1USETTS.`

APPARATUS Foie, sTRETcHING Alvi)y DRYING CLOTH.

Specification of Letters Patent No. 5,754, dated Septembery 5, 1848.

To all whom 25 may concern v Be it known that I, ERAs'rUs B. BIGELow, l

of Boston, in the county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, haveinvented a new and useful Improvement in Revolving Endless Tenter-Hooksfor Stretching and Drying Cloths, and that the following is a full,clear, and eXact description of the principle or character whichdist-inguishes it from all other things before known and of the mannerof making, constructing, and using the same, reference being had to theaccompanying drawings, making part of this specification, in which-Figure l is a side elevation of the machine; Fig. Q, a vertical crosssection; Fig. 3, a plan; Fig. Ll, an end view; Figs. 5, 6, and 7,detached views of the chain enlarged.

The same letters indicate like parts in all the figures.

The nature of my invention consists in the employment of an endlesschain of tenter hooks for stretching and drying cloth over a series ofsteam pipes or by air heated in any convenient way, instead of bystretching the cloth on stationary frames for that purpose as has beenthe practice heretofore.

The following is a description of the construct-ion and operation of themachine: Two horizontal rails (a) are placed parallel with each othersupported at suflicient height on posts (Z2) placed at proper intervals;at each end of these rails there is a prism (c) of sufficient size topresent a surface on each face thereof equal to the segments of a chainor bar (d) in which the tenter hooks are fixed. There are two of thesechains which traverse the rails above named, the segments of which arejointed together so that when straightened they form a continuous bar'from one prism to the other, on each side resting on the rails, as shownin Fig. 3. This bar is rabbeted on the outer edge above at (c) (seecross section Fig. 2), and this part slides under a projection (f) onthe rail (a). A rabbet is also cut in the inside of the bar (cl) belowat (g) against which a metal lip (it) attached to the rail (a) projectscovered by the inner edge of the bar above on which the hooks (a)l arefixed; in each of the segments of the bars or chains two frictionrollers (t) are inserted that run against the lip (71,) above named torelieve the bars from the friction occasioned by the cloth stretchedbetween them. A row of horizontal cross braces (lc) (Fig. 2) are thetenter hooks.

posts (.71) that support the rails; on these braces a 'series ofhorizontal steam. pipes (m) are laid, by means ofwhich the cloth isdried as it is 'carried over them stretched on At one end of the railsthere is a frame supported that the cloth (o) to be dried is wound on; afriction band is put around fastened one above another to each of the A)in which a beam is.

the lroller to regulate the tension of the cloth; from this roller thecloth descends t0 the rails, and each edge thereof is caught on to thetenter hooks. At this point therel is a shaft (p) bearing two spurwheels (g) of wood the teeth of which play in between the tenter hooksand press the cloth down on to them as it is drawn forward by the bars;this shaft is driven by a cog wheel (1*) at` tached thereto that worksinto a rack (s) on one of the bars. After the bars pass this shaft theyare gradually spread apart by the receding of the rails in which theyrun from each other, so as to stretch the cloth sufficiently for thepurpose intended. When the cloth arrives at the opposite end of therails (a), it may, if not sufhciently dry -be passed over asteamcylinder (t) and thence wound onto a cloth beam placed at theeXtreme end of the frame for that purpose; this roller is driven by aband (o) which allowsva slip as it enlarges in size to adapt it to themo-t-ion of the tenter bars. The band connects with a pulley (u) on theshaft of the prism (c) around which the bars (d) revolve. W, W, W aregear wheels that communicate motion from the same shaft to the steamcylinder the action of which is obvious without further description; (y,y) are the fast and loose pulleys around which the band from the drivingpower passes; these are on'a shaft (z) that communicates motion bymeansof a pinion (2) there on to the gear wheel (WV) above named on the prismshaft. The two prisms are geared together by means of a line shaft andbeveled wheels (x2) of ordinary construction, as shown in Fig. 2.

The operation of the machine is as fol' lows: The cloth descends fromthe beam at (o) and is hooked on to the tenter hooks on each side whichare moving forward by passing under the wheels (Q) that fix it firmly onthe hooks, and it is then carried forward; the bars on which the hooksare fixed being made to recede from each other sufficient to stretch thecloth, it then passes over the steamV pipes which are highly heatedwhere it is dried. When it reaches the end of the rails (a) it is drawnoff the hooks, and either passes up over the steam cylinder' to thereceiving cloth beam (u) or is carried directly thereto, according tothe nish to be given.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new and desireto secure b Letters Patent, is

l. The endless chain oftenter hooks, con-y structed substantially asherein set forth, `for conveying the cloth over the drying apparatus, inthe manner above specified.

2. I claim in combination with the above ,a series of steam pipes, orother equivalent device, for dryingthe cloth as it is made to pass overthem, as above described.

3. I also claim Vin combination therewith the steaml cylindervforcompleting the operation when required, all as herein set `forth.

"4. I claim the method of stretching the fabric on the tenter hoks bycausing the endless chains to be separated from each other as they moveforward as described.

5. I claim the employment of the wheels i (g) for lixing the cloth ontothe tenter hooks as hereinabove set forth.

E. B. BIGELOW.,

Witnesses:

A. P. BROWNE, CHS. M. KELLER.`

